Areas around and including North Andover

bridetobe0jb

Hi ladies,

We're looking into an opportunity that would have us relocating from Southern Calif to North Andover area.  What towns should we research?  We plan to rent first to get to know the areas before buying.  We will have one child going into school next fall so schools would be important.  What is the commute like?  Also, we are coming from a very diverse area and may take that for granted. My husband is Mexican and kids are therefore mixed.  Are there areas we should stay away from over other areas concerning this fact?  Thanks for your help.  It's really hard to research online since there is so much info, so hoping you gals can point us in the right direction to start.  Thanks.

Izzyk567

I'm from the area...North Andover, Tewksbury and Andover are very nice towns and the school systems are great. Methuen is also very nice and a little more affordable. I would say the schools are just ok, but there are some affordable Catholic schools. I would also check out Southern New Hampshire, which is very close (Salem, Windham, Derry, Londonderry, Hudson, etc). You will find more new-ish construction and bigger yards there. You could also try Dracut, certain parts of Lowell, Chelmsford, and Reading/N Reading, which are a bit further away. I would probably avoid Lawrence...it is very urban and there is some gang activity, higher crime levels, etc. Feel free to message me if you have any questions- i've lived in the Merrimack Valley my whole life.

Izzyk567

Oh re: the Mexican thing, I don't think there is anything to really be aware of. The Merrimack Valley has a large Dominican/Puerto Rican population, FWIW.

shesween

Izzy gave some great ideas. Not sure where your jobs will be and if you want access to public transportation. The Boston metro area has great and safe public transportation. I take the commuter rail from Woburn everyday to Boston. So Woburn is a good town to consider. Has good schools, shopping etc. A couple other towns to check out Wilmington and Burlington. Wilmington is also on the commuter rail, so so shopping though. Burlington has bus service and a giant shopping mall. All these towns have good rental opportunities. Also in general Boston is very diverse so don't even think twice about your DH's and children's Mexican heritage. Craigslist is great to check out rental properties to give you idea on rent and what's available. Best of luck!

LB324

My husband and I recently relocated from So Cal to North Andover and we absolutely love it!  We looked at several other towns, but we fell in love with North Andover.

KlovesG

My husband and I just moved to Andover, having previously lived in Woburn & Somerville and grown up in Marblehead.  Andover is a great mix of convenience to Boston & easy access to rural/hiking activities. We love it so far and the school system was an enormous part of the draw (as well as yard size).

Skibunny07

We live in Wilmington and the town is great. My husband grew up in this town and coaches high school football here. The schools are great, great neighborhoods, not really a bad area of town or anything. I think there was an Boston.com article recently that named it one of the top 10 most affordable towns or something like that. Its also nice because there are three exits for Wilmington off of 93 (major highway) and its very close to other highways like 95 and 495, also there are two commuter rail stops in town.